Something local is brewing on both sides of the Atlantic

London: A pair of gloves and a mallet rest on beer barrels at The Kernel microbrewery on October 17, 2012. Where once the big, multinational beer corporations accounted for the lion's share of brewery growth, now small, independent brewers are leading the way.

Beer drinkers in London and New York City may be separated by a frothy ocean, but, as photographers Mario Tama and Luke MacGregor saw for themselves over the past few days, they increasingly share a taste for cask ales produced by small, independent brewers.

During the pre-Prohibition era, Brooklyn (a New York City borough) had more than 45 breweries and was one of the largest brewing centers in the U.S., Getty Images reports, but today Brooklyn Brewery is the only brewery in the borough.

The tide is turning, though. A mid-year report by the Brewer's Association cited a 12 percent increase in craft beer sales to 6 million barrels this year. The number of American breweries has surged to a 125-year-high of 2,126 breweries last year, 97 percent of which are independent craft breweries.